Up the junction

Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant have a near-perfect record when it comes to talent-spotting. So expect to see a lot more of the four little-known actors starring in their new film, Cemetery Junction

Up the junction

Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant have a near-perfect record when it comes to talent-spotting. So expect to see a lot more of the four little-known actors starring in their new film, Cemetery Junction

When Ricky Gervais and I set out to make our first feature film together, we faced a problem. Cemetery Junction is a feel-good drama set in a small town in 1973 about three young mates drifting through life fighting, drinking and chasing girls. Freddie is scared of ending up like his working-class dad (played by Ricky) so he gets a white-collar job with Mr Kendrick (Ralph Fiennes). Along the way, Freddie is reunited with his old school sweetheart, Julie, but drifts apart from his best friends Bruce, a rebel without a cause, and Snork, a lovable idiot. Now here's the problem: the producers were keen for us to cast star names as the four youngsters. And we weren't so sure.

First, who are the young British box-office names apart from Robert Pattinson and Keira Knightley? And can you picture either of them growing up in a small town in 1973? Even if we hired just one big star, wouldn't that unbalance the whole dynamic? Famous actors can bring a lot of baggage to a role, however good they are. Would you have believed David Brent was a real middle manager being filmed by a documentary crew if he'd been played by Sean Connery? (Also, there seem to be lots of so-called movie stars, but I'm not sure people are rushing to the cinema to see any of them. I have never heard anyone say, "Ooh, I can't wait to see that – I hear Matthew McConaughey is in it.")

With Cemetery Junction, Ricky and I wanted to capture some of the spirit and energy of those classic 1960s British new wave movies. In those films it was perfectly acceptable, fashionable even, to introduce new faces, such as Albert Finney, Tom Courtenay and Julie Christie, all of whom became stars overnight. We really felt unknown actors would be far more convincing as the gang. We made our case and thankfully the producers agreed – so we began our search for four fresh faces.

We were looking for actors comfortable with our style – low-key, naturalistic, improvisatory – but also with movie-star charisma and good looks. Let's be honest, no one goes to the cinema to see ugly people. As Billy Wilder said of working with the unreliable Marilyn Monroe, "My Aunt Minnie would always be punctual and never hold up production, but who would pay to see my Aunt Minnie?"

We tried out various hopefuls in different combinations. One morning Christian Cooke, Tom Hughes and Jack Doolan were making their way up the street towards our office for another audition. Through the window Ricky spotted them shoving each other and joking around like old friends. "I think we've found our gang," said Ricky and we gave them the roles.

Later, the boys told us they had planned the whole thing, hoping we'd spot them walking up the street. If the film is a disaster it's because we were hustled.

When we first saw Christian Cooke he reminded us a little of a young John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever, which was a key influence on the film. He won us over in the auditions because he seemed believable as both a leading man and a small-town boy. But if Christian was believable as the naive lad-next-door, I was worried he was far too handsome to be believable as Ricky Gervais's son. Christian assured me that his real dad is also a fat, working-class slob. I'm sure he was lying but I was happy to be persuaded. Ricky was quick to point out that he was once young, thin and handsome, which is true, I've seen the photos – but frankly that just makes how he looks nowadays all the more tragic.

Cemetery Junction is a lot more dramatic than our previous work, and Tom Hughes plays the rebellious Bruce. Unlike our usual characters, Bruce doesn't just think he's cool, he actually is cool – I mean Cool Hand Luke cool, a boozy brawler trapped in a small town dreaming of escape. In real life Tom is a thoughtful, Rada-trained actor, not a street-fighting man. We had to encourage him to strut and swagger like a rock star. In early auditions he played Bruce a little too twitchy and hyper. We reminded him that icons of cool such as Steve McQueen and Clint Eastwood do very little on screen. It makes them far more aloof and enigmatic because they don't talk, they watch and listen, and you're drawn in because you want to know what they're thinking.

(I know what you're thinking: a middle-aged fat bloke and a lanky geek think they taught a handsome 21-year-old how to be cool? Well, yeah, we did actually, so screw you.)

We also made Tom smoke cigarettes relentlessly in every take. He probably now has a 40-a-day habit, but it was a small price to pay because a) everyone in 1973 smoked, and b) smoking looks cool. Sorry, but it does. Paul Newman shooting pool in The Hustler with a cigarette hanging from his lips? Cool. Clint as The Man With No Name lighting a stogy before a gunfight? Cool.

(I know what you're thinking: a middle-aged fat bloke and a lanky geek think they know what's cool? Well, yeah, we do actually, we read about it on the internet. So screw you.)

Jack Doolan cut his teeth in a TV sitcom and plays the more obvious comic role of Snork. In reality Jack is a streetwise London lad, but on screen he has just the right mix of sweetness, vulnerability and adolescent idiocy that we needed. The script demanded that Jack shave his chest, dress in bellbottoms and dance and sing in front of 300 people as well as Ralph Fiennes – all of which is pretty intimidating for an actor who's never done a film before. But Jack did all of it without complaining. (Unlike Ricky, who complained because in one scene he had to stand up.)

A lot of young actors are inexperienced, which means they lack confidence. Felicity Jones has been acting since she was nine and has done lots of film work, which means she is comfortable on camera and doesn't need a lot of hand-holding and mollycoddling, a great asset when you're working fast. Her character, Julie, has heard about women's lib and 60s permissiveness but is totally unaware that she is a caged bird, unwittingly controlled by a fiancé and a father who've mapped out her future as a good little wife. On screen, Felicity has a luminance that is hugely appealing, but also a retro quality that puts you in mind of the Julie Christies and Rita Tushinghams of yesteryear. That quality was hard to find because most young actresses seem very modern and knowing. Felicity can project a more old- fashioned mix of intelligence and innocence, and you can believe she's a smart woman blind to the realities around her.

Ricky and I are very proud that with The Office and Extras we introduced Martin Freeman, Mackenzie Crook, Lucy Davis and Ashley Jensen to a wide audience. We think we've got a pretty keen eye for finding new talent and, at the risk of sounding arrogant, I think with Cemetery Junction we've done it again.